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The Great Apes Survival Partnership (GRASP) vision is to conserve and expand all existing wild great ape populations and habitats and ensure their long-term viability

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The Great Apes Survival Partnership (GRASP) is a unique alliance of nearly 100 nations, research institutions, United Nations (U.N.) agencies, conservation organizations and private supporters committed to the long-term protection of great apes and their habitats in Africa and Asia. Under the U.N. umbrella, GRASP unites the major stakeholders committed to the protection of great apes, and the GRASP Secretariat is jointly hosted by the U.N. Environment Programme (UNEP) and the U.N. Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

GRASP was established in 2001 to address global threats to great ape populations and habitats by utilizing the collective resources of the partnership to respond to the conservation crisis facing mankind’s closest relatives. Increases in deforestation, illegal hunting, habitat loss, illicit trade, agro-industrial expansion, human population growth and disease not only put the great apes in danger, but these activities encroach upon their habitats as well.

Experts predict that by 2030, over 90% of great ape habitat will have been disturbed by the expansion of development projects. The rapid progression of these threats has caused an especially dramatic decline in some orangutan and gorilla populations. In the 20th century alone, great apes are believed to have become extinct in four African countries, and have dwindled to fragile populations in others.

GRASP supports the development of economic models and alternative scenarios that balance the needs of biodiversity conservation with

those of sustainable economic expansion in Africa and Asia, emphasizing the opportunities offered by programmes that offer payment for ecosystem services. GRASP also engages with local communities living near great ape habitats, not only to build capacity but to encourage and implement alternative and sustainable solutions that help to preserve biodiversity.

GRASP works to highlight issues of international concern, such as illegal trade or illicit logging and mining, and it leverages its political advocacy on behalf of great apes. To raise the public profile and awareness on these issues, GRASP produces studies that address these threats and provides analyses on alternatives.

GRASP’s ability to deliver a strong, unified message on behalf of great ape conservation is one of its greatest assets. With its access to politicians, business leaders, agro-industrial executives, key decision-makers, and relevant stakeholders, GRASP impacts local, national, and international attitudes, and raises political and social debate regarding great ape conservation to the highest possible level.

Great apes once populated most of Equatorial Africa and vast areas of Southeast Asia, but now find themselves confined to forest pockets that only hint at their former ranges. As important flagship species that regulate the health of forests and promote biodiversity, great apes require the commitment and collaboration of GRASP and its partners if they are to survive.

Overview

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GREAT APE Distribution Map

AFRICA

NIGERIA-CAMEROON CHIMPANZEEPan troglodytes elliotiCountries: Nigeria, CameroonPopulation: 3,500-9,000 (est.)Conservation Status: Endangered

CROSS RIVER GORILLAGorilla gorilla diehliCountries: Nigeria, CameroonPopulation: 250-300 (est.)Conservation Status: Critically Endangered

WESTERN LOWLAND GORILLAGorilla gorilla gorillaCountries: Congo, Gabon, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Equatorial Guinea, AngolaPopulation: 150,000 (est.)Conservation Status: Critically Endangered

WESTERN CHIMPANZEEPan troglodytes verusCountries: Côte D’Ivoire, Guinea, Liberia, Mali, Sierra Leone, Ghana, Guinea-Bissau, Senegal, NigeriaPopulation: 21,300-55,600 (est.)Conservation Status: Endangered

CENTRAL CHIMPANZEEPan troglodytes troglodytesCountries: Angola, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Congo, DR Congo, Equatorial Guinea, GabonPopulation: 70,000-116,500 (est.)Conservation Status: Endangered

BONOBOPan paniscusCountry: DR CongoPopulation: 50,000 (est.)Conservation Status: Endangered

SUMATRAN ORANGUTANPongo abelliCountry: Sumatra (Indonesia)Population: 6,600 (est.)Conservation Status: Critically Endangered

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ASIA

EASTERN CHIMPANZEEPan troglodytes schweinfurthiiCountries: DR Congo, Central African Republic, South Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda, BurundiPopulation: 200,000-250,000 (est.)Conservation Status: Endangered

EASTERN LOWLAND GORILLAGorilla beringei graueriCountry: DR CongoPopulation: 2,000-10,000 (est.)Conservation Status: Endangered

BORNEAN ORANGUTANPongo pygmaeusCountry: Borneo (Indonesia)Population: 48,000- 59,500 (est.)Conservation Status: Endangered

MOUNTAIN GORILLAGorilla beringei beringeiCountries: Rwanda, Uganda, DR CongoPopulation: 880 Conservation Status: Critically Endangered

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Orangutan Conservation in Central Kalimantan, IndonesiaThe Belantikan-Arut area in Borneo’s Central Kalimantan is home to an estimated 6,000 orangutans, one of the largest populations living outside protected areas. Belantikan-Arut is recognized as critical habitat.

Although light logging activities are permitted, the area cannot be converted for agro-industrial use. Belantikan-Arut plays a critical role as an upper water-catchment area for a large river that flows past the main populated regions downstream. But pressure from mining for iron ore and other minerals,

over-logging, and a change from its legal status to allow clear-cutting of trees persists.

GRASP worked with the Orangutan Foundation and local communities to increase the sustainability of agro-forestry activities, promote education and awareness campaigns, and bolster empowerment activities. As a result, local communities have become more cohesive, have made better-informed decisions on sustainable land use management, and have received help in submitting proposals for assistance from local government agencies.

By demonstrating how communities can live sustainably without resorting to widespread forest destruction, GRASP and its partners are able to enlist support for future conservation of the surrounding forests.

Habitat Protection GRASP supports sustainable development and conservation-friendly solutions that protect and expand great ape habitats.

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The Tai-Sapo Forest Complex that links Côte d’Ivoire and Liberia represents the largest contiguous bloc of tropical rainforest within the Upper Guinean Forest Ecosystem. The area provides habitat for more than a quarter of Africa’s mammals, including the endangered West African chimpanzee, the pygmy hippopotamus, the forest elephant, and other rare endemic species. In Côte d’Ivoire, the complex consists of the Tai National Park and three adjacent classified forests (Cavally, Goin-Débé, Haute-Dodo), while Liberia includes the Sapo National Park, the Grebo National Forest and several large forest concessions.

Years of civil unrest left the Tai-Sapo Forest Complex under severe threat from development, human

encroachment, illegal hunting, mining and logging. In 2009, GRASP and its partners initiated a trans-boundary process designed to spur collaboration between Côte d’Ivoire and Liberia and establish national and trans-boundary corridors.

Subsequent meetings outlined the aim and process of the initiative, and work quickly began that addressed issues of legislation, economic incentives to conserve potential corridors, land-use planning and corridor establishment, and conflict prevention and resolution.

Political AdvocacyGRASP promotes dialogue on great ape conservation issues at the highest political level, utilizing the United Nations’ convening power to access decision-makers and influence policy.

Trans-boundary Cooperation and Sustainable Development in Côte d’Ivoire and Liberia

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Forests play a critical role in ongoing climate change negotiations, forests hold carbon and sequester more carbon when they can grow and thus mitigate climate change, while deforestation contributes heavily to the emission of greenhouse gases. Threats to forests and great ape habitats are considerable, and range from slash-and-burn agriculture to mining, large scale industrial logging and conversion into agro-industrial landscapes.

Reduced Emissions through Deforestation and Degradation (REDD+) provides economic incentives to keep forest carbon stocks intact and is considered to be a cost-efficient way to curb greenhouse gas emissions.

GRASP partnered with the Wildlife Conservation Society in Cameroon and developed a landscape-level approach to REDD+ for the Takamanda region, home to the highly endangered Cross River gorilla. The study examined current and future threats and modeled different types of emission-reduction activities. As a result, Cameroonian authorities had detailed information about current drivers and underlying causes of deforestation, in addition to options under REDD+ that could contribute to local development, biodiversity conservation and climate change mitigation.

Green Economy GRASP seeks to reconcile development and great ape conservation through an economy that values human well-being, social equity, and reduced environmental risks.

Cross River Gorilla Conservation Through REDD+ in Cameroon

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Health Monitoring Programmes in Congo and DR CongoHumans and great apes are genetically very close and share many diseases. Prominent examples include the outbreaks of Ebola, AIDS and other deadly diseases in humans, as an unintentional effect of hunting and butchering great apes, as well as the outbreak of human respiratory diseases in chimpanzees. Humans and great apes share many habitats, and more contact between hunters, researchers, assistants, tourists and great apes leads to a higher risk of disease transmission.

GRASP supports health monitoring programmes in DR Congo (Kahuzi-Biega) and Congo (Lossi Interzone and Nouabale Ndoki), to provide national park authorities with an early warning programme

for disease detection. Health protocols and community health programmes were developed and implemented to minimize the risk of disease transmission from researchers and tourists to gorillas and chimpanzees.

Health monitoring is a crucial instrument in areas that have been affected by Ebola or are close to areas that have been affected in the past. GRASP supports efforts to provide park managers with vital information in order to respond accordingly.

Disease

GRASP supports efforts to monitor and mitigate the diseases that threaten both humans and great apes.

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The Kahuzi-Biega National Park in eastern DR Congo was created in 1970 and later expanded to the west through the Nindja corridor, which connected highland mountains and lowland forest regions.

The park is rich in species native to the Albertine Rift, and is home to a large population of Eastern Lowland gorillas, chimpanzees and elephants. In the 1990s, civil unrest and human encroachment devastated the park and 90% of the forest cover in the corridor was lost. In addition, local communities claimed they had never been consulted or informed

as to the park boundaries. GRASP partnered with the Congolese wildlife authority (ICCN), the International Institute for Sustainable Development and the Wildlife Conservation Society to develop a conflict-resolution strategy for Kahuzi-Biega.

As part of the implementation process, local community conservation committees were founded to solve disputes between park rangers and the local population. As a result, illegal settlers left the Nindja corridor and illegal activities decreased by 40 percent.

Conflict-SensitiveConservation GRASP seeks to reduce tension and facilitate dialogue between different interest groups in order to lessen risks to great apes.

Conflict Resolution Strategy to Engage Communities and Promote Conservation in DR Congo

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Numerous cases of organized illegal trafficking and trade of gorillas, chimpanzees, bonobos and orangutans over the past decade indicate that great apes have become a highly symbolic – and potentially devastating – piece of the multi-billion dollar global trade. Environmental crime ranks among the most significant illegal activities in the world, and conservative data suggests that the illicit trade in great apes is widespread and increasingly driven by standing orders from Asian markets.

From 2005 to 2011, a minimum of 643 chimpanzees, 48 bonobos, 98 gorillas and 1,019 orangutans are documented to have been lost from the wild, numbers that formed the basis for the GRASP report, Stolen Apes: The Illicit Trade in Chimpanzees, Gorillas, Bonobos and Orangutans. This report was the first to calculate the worldwide scale and scope of illegal trade, and provided the only baseline data that included all great apes. Stolen Apes established links between the illegal trade in great apes and other contraband, including arms, drugs, money, timber

and other illegal wildlife trades. Stolen Apes also led to the creation of an international database to track the illicit trade in great apes and identify routes, trends and areas of concern.

Many studies suggest that far more apes are either killed during the hunt or die in captivity than are ever confiscated, and Stolen Apes calculated that 22,218 wild great apes were lost between 2005 and 2011. Law enforcement efforts lag far behind the rates of illegal trade, and only 27 arrests were made in Africa and Asia in connection with great ape trade during that time.

Illegal TradeGRASP endorses law enforcement efforts to halt the illegal trade in great apes, great ape parts, and the consumption of great ape meat.

Illicit Trade in Chimpanzees, Gorillas, Bonobos and Orangutans

un-grasp.org

Photo: Johannes Refisch